You’ve never applied for Social Security disability before, and the odds of a Social Security disability approval for osteoarthritis are not in your favor. The majority of initial Social Security disability applications are denied. Many of these denials include people who could be eligible for disability benefits, but who have failed to demonstrate their eligibility to the Social Security Administration.

Don’t Let This Happen To You

Instead, we encourage you to take the following steps that will allow the Social Security Administration to make a fair and accurate determination of your eligibility for benefits. Specifically, you can:

Submit medical documentation of your condition. This is one of the most important parts of your application. Your reputable healthcare provider must do tests and physical exams that confirm your diagnosis and document those results.

Demonstrate compliance with medical treatments. In order to receive Social Security disability benefits, you must have tried suggested medical treatments (unless you have a valid excuse for not doing so). You will build a stronger disability claim if you can show that you tried all suggested medical treatments and that they did not work for you.

Establish a clear picture of how osteoarthritis impacts your life. The Social Security Administration is trying to determine if you are disabled and whether you can work. Thus, it is important to clearly establish how your osteoarthritis impacts your activities of daily living and your ability to work any job.

Know your rights. It is important to understand your rights when you apply for Social Security disability—and if you need to file an appeal—so that you can protect your potential benefits.

Get help from a board-certified lawyer. An experienced lawyer who understands the Social Security disability system can be a valuable asset to you whether you are filing an initial application or trying to get benefits on appeal.

To learn more tips about submitting a strong Social Security disability application, please read our FREE book, Social Security Disability: What You Need to Know, or contact us via this website today to schedule an initial consultation with an attorney who will look at your entire claim and help you present a strong case for disability benefits.